I first found Kodomo no Jikan a few years ago (the anime) and sort of enjoyed it but was put off by the Loli-echhi-ness of it after the first couple episodes. But something about it stuck with me. Perhaps that the characters didn't actually behave as typical Loli-Echhi characters (but were only drawn that way) peaked my curiosity as to what I may have been missing. So, against the brief but brutal recommendation of the "Otaku Guy" I obtained the complete series and this time binged the entire set in a week or so. And as is the typical assumption of adaptations wondered how much was missing from the original source material... which brings me here.

I worked through the 93 chapters in about 8 weeks... as fast as work and sleep requirements would allow, compounded by the emotional rest required to fully digest this amazing work of art. Let me put it this way, I found this work to be so deep, compelling, and engaging, that IMHO there must be a significant autobiographical element to this story; I can't think of any other way for a storyline so complex and unconventional to FEEL so true.

To sum up the central plot of the story, Kodomo no Jikan is a fairly deep psycological study of a young girl with a "Loilita complex" (not the hentai trope but rather the much older Nabcov version in which a much younger female develops romantic and erotic feelings for an older male, usually to his surprise and shame). In the larger story, its the study of how childhood emotional abuse/neglect can manifest itself in the behavior of it's victims in their younger years and into their adulthood. Zooming out still further it asks the questions of "What does being 'Normal' actually mean?" and "Is it possible for unconventional Love to be valid". It is the rare masterpiece of literature that can pose such important questions on so many different levels, and rarer still to provide a rich tapestry of laugh out loud humor, cry in your beer drama, heartstring plucking romance, and hot, panting eroticism in the same work.

Now I concede that watching an 11 year old girl learn to mastrubate is not everyones idea of hot, panting eroticism, but it is to her, and this work is presented honestly enough that by this time in the story (chapters 50 something...) you completely feel her budding passions along with her. And anyone who believes that a person like this can't possibly exist in the real world and is therefore a gross fantasy, hasn't happened to meet one or two... they are rare, but not nonexistent.

My only real disappointment was with the end. By the 80's chapters it's clear that the plot arcs are bending toward closure, and considering the depth of the characters and their arcs, the number of minor storylines still in play, and the overriding complexity of the theme all, from my point of view, needed until a chapter 100 to resolve with any satisfaction. That 93 was the actual last chapter and all the plots didn't twist so much as dangle limply left me feeling cheated. Some of the discussion of the final chapter supposes that there was an artificial deadline of some sort imposed on the author that forced the abrupt conclusion. This work up until the end felt so deep and true to me, it hurt that the same truth shown in the first 91 chapters just didn't happen in the last two.

Overall, I would say this is one of the most thought provoking and moving stories I have come across in many years; if only the ending were as rich as the rest.